The fiords of Baffin Island: description and classification

Abstract

Arguments on the origin of fiords can be traced back nearly 100 years. However, very few studies have provided key measurements of fiord dimensions or other critical parameters (see Pickard and Stanton, 1980). Thus the study of fiords has been largely theoretical, with little empirical data available. The major objective of this chapter is to describe the fiords on the eastern coast of Baffin Island and to attempt a classification based on measured parameters. These data lead to some commentary and conclusions on the origin of fiords and in particular on the old argument that fiords are primarily structural in origin (e.g. Gregory, 1913; Johnson, 1915). Most modern text books (Flint, 1971; Sugden and John, 1976) subscribe to a predominantly glacial origin for fiords although Andrews (1974) did express concern over the easy acceptance of a theory supported with so little data.